This invention relates to a tool for use in aligning a vehicle door.
It is a common problem in motor vehicles that the hinged door is either misaligned during the initial manufacture or tends to sag as the vehicle becomes older so that it does not properly close without binding of the door at one edge of its opening.
It will be appreciated that vehicle doors generally close an opening in the vehicle body which has inwardly facing surfaces generally at right angles to the opening with the door also having such surfaces which, when the door is closed, lie closely adjacent and parallel to the surfaces of the opening. In addition, the door generally has a flange around the outer faces at the outer edge of the door to close against the vehicle body.
When the door is misaligned or sags, one of the outer faces of the door tends to bind against the corresponding face of the opening thus inhibiting the proper closing of the door.
Generally the manner of overcoming this misalignment is for the mechanic to apply force to the door to improve its alignment in the opening. This can be done generally by the crude methods of applying a lever beneath the door which is then pulled upwardly to force against the under edge of the door and physically lift it upwardly to distort the hinges. This can often leave an indentation in the lower edge which quickly loses the protective paint covering and allows the door to rust. In other cases the same technique is used but is carried out using a jack which applies force to the underside of the door with the same damaging results.
It is one object of the present invention to provide an improved alignment tool which can be used to apply force to the door without the danger of damaging the surface of the door.
According to the invention, therefore, there is provided an alignment adjusting tool for use with a vehicle door in a vehicle of the type comprising a door mounted on vertical hinges along one side of an opening so as to pivot from an open position to close the opening, the opening including a face opposite the hinges and facing inwardly toward the hinges, a striker pin extending outwardly from the face toward the hinges, the door including a face arranged with the door closed to lie closely adjacent and substantially parallel to said face of said opening and a lock recess in said face of said door for receiving said pin into a lock mechanism within the door in a locking action, the tool comprising a plate member having a recess at a forward end thereof shaped to be received onto said pin at a base of the pin adjacent said face so as to extend at least partly therearound and a pin member extending outwardly from one side of the plate member at a position thereon spaced from said recess by a distance greater than the distance between said pin and an outer edge of said face of said opening, the pin member being shaped substantially the same as the pin so as to be engageable with said lock, said plate member being shaped such that with said recess engaged over said pin, said pin member can engage into said lock recess, and means on said plate member by which a force can be applied thereto in a vertical direction at a position spaced from said recess so as to pivot said plate member about said recess to raise or lower said door.
The tool, therefore, is of a simple construction with a forward end thereof being arranged to engage the pin of the opening and a rearward end thereof having a replacement pin for engaging the lock. The leverage force therefore is applied around the door striker pin and is applied directly to the lock mechanism both of which are manufactured sufficiently strongly to accommodate vigorous closing of the door and hence can accommodate the necessary forces applied to distort the door hinges.
Preferably the pin member is arranged at an end of the plate member with the leverage being applied to the plate member by a hexagonal rod which extends outwardly from the rear surface of the plate member for engagement by a wrench. The extent of the rod member is sufficient that the wrench thus clears the flange of the door in extending outwardly beyond the door a sufficient distance to allow leverage on the door. The rod is angled slightly away from the recess of the forward end in order that the wrench thus extends back toward the plane of the plate member so that the force is applied in line with the plate member to prevent twisting.
With the foregoing in view, and other advantages as will become apparent to those skilled in the art to which this invention relates as this specification proceeds, the invention is herein described by reference to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, which includes a description of the best mode known to the applicant and of the preferred typical embodiment of the principles of the present invention, in which: